Bhanu Prakash
Details
Telecommunications Engineering
University of Colorado Boulder
2001 : 2003
B.E
Telecommunications Engineering
Bangalore University
1996 : 2000
I also collaborate closely with engineering organizations to ensure precise project execution, operational efficiency, and adherence to timelines. Through my guidance, I help teams build successful and scalable systems that meet the needs of their organization and its stakeholders.
Ultimately, my aim is to help organizations establish a robust cybersecurity architecture that can mitigate risks effectively, detect and respond to threats, and protect against data breaches. I achieve this by providing customized guidance and support that enables organizations to improve their overall security posture while achieving their business objectives.
2022 : Present
Tri-Valley Network Security
Cybersecurity Consultant and Advisor
I was an integral part of the pre-sales team that was instrumental in driving Fortinet's growth by expanding, managing, and directing the Strategic, Enterprise, Commercial, and SLED verticals across the West and Central regions in the United States. The highlight of my career was mentoring Sales Engineering (SE) teams on technical and managerial development and facilitating their promotions to higher technical and management positions. One of my major contributions was securing large white space accounts, which helped increase company revenue.
DRIVING GROWTH STRATEGY :
• Created 4 new revenue regions in 3 years, each generating $20M+ in annual revenue, surpassing targets.
• Managed teams that covered 200+ Fortune 500 companies and converted 30+ white space accounts to long-term recurring revenue customers.
BUILD GREAT TEAMS :
• Incubated 5 regional Sales Engineering teams from scratch.
• Hired and mentored 50+ individual contributors in cross-functional roles. Stood up successful teams from the ground to cover Enterprise, Commercial, and SLED regions.
• Mentored technical and business team members who have risen to regional and national leadership roles.
2016 : 2022
Fortinet
Director of Systems Engineering (US West)
As the leader of the West Enterprise SE team at Fortinet in 2015, I helped expand the business in the Mountain and West States by aggressively hiring new team members. With effective management, motivation, and guidance, our team surpassed sales quotas, achieved technical and strategic account wins, and executed enterprise-wide product deployments. Through strong executive relationships, we built a thriving business, established long-term partnerships, and provided value-added solutions to customer needs.
DELIVERING INNOVATION AT SCALE :
• Drove successful adoption of GTM strategies for cutting-edge solutions such as SASE, SD-WAN, ZTNA, and multi-cloud security resulting in 40% sales growth.
• Demonstrated leadership in successfully leading cross-functional teams to architect, prove, and win complex customer projects
OPERATIONAL AND TRANSACTIONAL FOCUS :
• Analyzed data and feedback from operational tools such as SFDC to drive efficiency in pre-sales processes.
• Reduced average time-to-productivity (information gathering, POV, POC, training, etc.) from 2+ months to under 4 weeks resulting in faster deal closures.
• Focused on learning and enablement for internal teams, partners, and customers. Put in place a monthly train-the-trainer and regional training engagements to drive product and operational knowledge quickly to the field.
• Public speaker at industry events such as EVANTA, State CISO conferences, Oracle Open World, and significant partner-focused events.
2015 : 2016
Fortinet
Sr. SE Manager (Enterprise West)
In my role as a Consulting SE, I worked on product positioning, design, and solution positioning for Juniper's routing, switching, and security products. I provided technical expertise and support to my customers worldwide, which included delivering technical enablement campaigns, developing training materials, and participating in update events with Juniper's Engineering and Product teams. Additionally, I identified and developed key opportunities, led technical sales initiatives, collaborated with other teams to position Juniper's portfolio, and contributed to the development of my customer's account plan. I played a crucial role as the primary point of contact for my customer, as well as Juniper's strategic and tactical initiatives. Our team exceeded quota annually, with a record 1200% achievement in one year, resulting in $200M+ revenue from a single account.
2013 : 2015
Juniper Networks
Consulting Engineer (Systems Engineering)
In my role as an SE tech lead, I supported some of the top Fortune 100 customers in the Bay Area by providing pre-sales technical assistance, product positioning, design, and solution positioning for all Juniper routing, switching, and security products. Acting as a customer advocate, I facilitated communication, information gathering, and documentation, while also collaborating with cross-functional teams to validate key routing and switching features and develop go-to-market strategies.
2007 : 2013
Juniper Networks
Systems Engineer (Tech Lead, Major Accounts)
Skills
bgp, border gateway protocol (bgp), carrier ethernet, Cloud Computing, Coaching & Mentoring, Cross-functional Team Leadership, Cybersecurity, dwdm, Ethernet, Information Security, internet protocol (ip), internet protocol suite (tcp/ip), ipsec, ipv6, is-is, isis, Juniper, Leadership, metro ethernet, MPLS, mpls vpn, multiprotocol label switching (mpls), network architecture, network design, network engineering, Networking, Network Security, ospf, pre-sales, qos, routers, Routing, routing protocols, Sales Enablement, Sales Engineering, Sales Processes, security, Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), snmp, Software as a Service (SaaS), Solution Selling, Strategic Leadership, switches, Systems Engineering, voice over ip (voip), voip, vpls, WAN, Web Application Firewall, wide area network (wan), vlan, junos, rip, tcp/ip, multicast, stp, ldp, juniper technologies, juniper networks products
About
As a leader in cybersecurity and networking, I serve as an advocate and expert, assisting CISOs and CIOs in constructing comprehensive security architectures and strategies encompassing Cloud, SASE, SD-WAN, and Enterprise security. I build great teams of proficient, technical pre-sales cybersecurity architects who contribute to the successful execution of intricate digital transformation projects and cultivate robust relationships with senior stakeholders.
Here's a quick summary of my latest achievements:
• Created four new revenue regions each yielding $20M+ in annual revenue.
• Helped achieve 200M+ in new annual revenue from a single customer (1200% achievement).
• Successfully led cross-functional teams to architect, prove, and win complex customer projects.
• Drove 40% additional sales growth by positioning cutting-edge solutions
• Incubated five regional System Engineering teams from scratch.
• Hired and mentored 50+ cross-functional roles to cover Enterprise, Commercial, and SLED regions.
• Reduced average time-to-productivity from 2+ months to under four weeks, driving faster deal closures.
In my spare time, I love to read (especially sci-fi), fix things around the house, and practice judo with my kids.
I am always looking to grow my personal and professional network and am happy to help if you have any questions. Feel free to connect via LinkedIn or contact me directly at bhanu@trivalleynetsec.com